Can closing and exhausting machine.



L. WURZBURG.

CAN CLOSING AND EXHAUSTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION HLED SEPT. 2. 1915.

1,211,266. Patented Jan. 2,1917.

E: V cuum L. WURZBURG.

CAN CLOSING AND EXHAUSTING MACHINE. v

APPUCATION men SEPT-2,1915- 1,21 1,266. I Q Patented Jan. 2,1917.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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lniinrssrs L. WURZBURG. -CAN CLOSING AND EXHAUSTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION HLED SEPT-2,1915.

Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

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L. WURZBURG. CAN CLOSING AND EXHAUSTING MA CHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT-2,1915- Patented- Jan. 2, 1917.

4 SHEETS$HEET 4- IlIiIuvssrs LUIDWIG WURZBURG, 0F IBELLINGHAM,wesnmeron.

CAN CLOSING AND EXHAUSTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed September a, 1915. Serial No. 48,741.

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, LUDWIG WURZBURG, a subject of the King of GreatBritain, residing at Bellingham, in the county of Wha-tcom and State ofWashington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in CanClosing and Exhausting Machines; and I do hereby declare the followingto be a full. clear, and exact description of the invention, such aswill enable others skilled in the art'to which it appertains to makeanduse the same. I

This invention relates to head seaming devices for can closing machines,and more especially to those having rotating upper dies with externalseamers; andthe object of the inventionis to provide such'machine withmeans whereby the seaming is done in a hermetically closed chamber, the,same being formed within a two-part hood whose parts or sections arebrought together to inclose the seaming mechanism and the upper portionof the can by means which are actuated automatically when a can is fedonto the table but are not actuated when no can ispresent.

The following specification describes in detail my preferred manner ofapplylng thls' invention to a so-called stationary machine, and thedrawings omit the can feeding mechanism and the can ejector as thesedevices are not always employed in this type of machines. The last twofigures of the drawings show diagrammatically the appli-- cation of thisinvention to a so-called rotary machine. y

In said drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation of the completeexhausting device of the closing machine, and Fig. 2 a plan viewthereof, with parts in section. Fig. 1s a vertical section on the line3-3 of Fig, 2, and Fig. 4 another section on the line 44 of 'Fig. 2.Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectlonal detail on the line 55 of Fig. 2, andFig. 6

a section on the line 6-6 of Fig, 5 Fig. 7 is an enlarged detail in planview of the table and trip, and Fig. 8 a perspective de-' tail of thetrip detached. Fig. 9 is a detail of the bell crank lever mechanism,being a view looking from the point indicated by the arrow 9 in Fig. 1.Fig. 10 is a perspect ve detail'of the drum support on an enlargedscale. Fig. 11 is an enlarged sectional detail taken on about the line1111 of Fig. 3,

showing also in section how the bottom flange of the hood-sections canbe wldened to produce a smaller hole which will accom- Patented Jan. 2,191a.

modate a smallercan. Fig. 12 is a diagram matic plan'view showingthe'adaptation of this invention to another form of canning machine, andFig. 13 is a perspective detail illustrating a modification of therocking beam or lever which will be adopted in this case.

I have employed reference letters to designate certain standard parts asemployed in most ofthe canning machines now in general use, and nonovelty is claimed for such parts. The letter P designates the platformhaving a table T, raised and lowered by means diagrammatically indicatedat R in Fig. 3, and in Fig. 12 the reference P designates the platformand T the table, the latter supporting the can C. Above the v platformis the seaming. mechanism whereof it will be necessary for the purposesof this specification to refer only to the cylindrical shank of the headH and the seamers S carried by such head, and the letter D designatesthe driving mechanismwhich is 0on nected by means not necessary to showwith the seaming mechanism and withthe moving parts of my machine.

The purpose of this invention is to exhaust the air from the cansbeforeclosing them hermetically with the caps, and in order to do so it isquite obviousthat the head andthe seamers must be housed along with theupper end of the can within a chamber from which'the air-can beexhausted at the proper moment; and yet theparts or sections of thischamber must be open when the can is introduced, and must again beopened to remove the sealed can and permit the introduction of the nextcan rea'dy for sealing. In order to carry out this broad object and yetto adapt the machine toact on cans of various sizes, I preferably makeuse of the construction which I will now de-.

scribe in detail although the parts may have to be changed slightly toadapt them to the various seaming" machines on the market.

from the plate are four rods 3 which are ren-z dered verticallyadjustable by nuts 4 above and below the plate, and pinned'to the lower-1 ends 1 h rods are blocks 5 which carry" two parallel guide rods 6extending alongside the hood yet to be described and in substantialparallelism with the direction of movement of the cams which latterenter from the left as shown by the arrows in The hood as best seen inFigs. 3 and 11 is made up of these two sections 9- which aresemi-cylindrical, their edges 9 standing perhaps a half inch apart, andeach section has its upper end reduced and provided with one half of acylindrical neck 10 lined internally with rubber or other packing 10' sothat it will make an air-tight juncture with the wall of the stuffingbox 2 when the sections are brought together. Each section carries atits lower end one-half of an internal flange 11 which around its inneredge is provided with rubber or other packing 11, preferably securedthereto by a dovetail joint as seen in Fig. 11, and this packingisadapted to make an air-tight juncture with the wall of the-can C whenthe sections are brought together. To operate on a smaller can, a widerflange '11 might be secured beneath the flange l1, and its packing wouldcontact with the wall of a can of smaller circumference; and at thattime a proper head H and seamers S would of course be employed. Tooperate on a can of less height than shown in the drawings, a head Hwould have to be employed whose seamers S stand lower; and in order topermit these adaptations of the machine the 'entire hood will be madelarge enough to contain the head and seamers for the largest can ever tobe handled.

Mounted on the table T at one side of the path of the can is a guide 12as best seen in Fig. 7, and pivoted at 13 to the other side 'of thetable is a trip 14 borne by a spring I 15 normally into contact with astop 16.

Carried by the free end of the trip is a finger 17 projectinghorizontally beyond the table and standing under a fork 18 at the lowerend of a rod 19 as best seen in Fig.- 1. This rod slides verticallythrough a guide 20 on an arm 21 carried by a block 22 which isadjustably mounted by a set screw 23 on ,a standard 24 rising from thetable, and its upper end is connected with a beam or rock lever 26 bymeans of a pin 27 engaging a slot 28 therein. The beam is pivoted orfulcrumed as at 31 in the upper end of the standard, and its inner armis normally dopressed by a spring 29 bearing on a pin 30,

so that its outer arm rises against the stop 32. Said outer arm ispivoted at 33' to a bell crank lever as best seen in Fig. 9, such leverbemg pivoted at 35 to the upper which in turn is pivoted to a swivelmechanism also shown in this view and whose details will be describedlater; and this mechanism connects the link with a shaft 37 rotatablyand slidably mounted in'bearings 38.

Power from the driving mechanism D is communicated to a driving gear 39which is preferably spring pressed as shown at 40, and the shaft 37carries a driven gear 41 adapted to be engaged with the driving gear 39when this shaft is projected through its bearings 38 by movement of thebell crank lever. The shaft carries a pair of cams 45 in position toengage rollers 46 journaled in the rear ends of push rods 47 whichlatter are preferably telescopic as will be presently described, and theinner end of each push rod is pivoted at 48 to the lower end of a crank49 whose upper end is keyed on a shaft 50 which is journaled in a block51 mounted on and upstanding from the mid-length. of the guide-rod 6.Fast on the shaft 50 is a drum 52, and from pins 53 at top and bottomthereof lead tapes 54 whose outer ends are connected with ears 7' risingfrom the blocks 7. Between the latter and the intermediate block 51expansive springs 56 are coiled around the rod 6, and they serve to holdsaid movable blocks 7 normally in contact with the fixed blocks 5 at thelower ends of the rods 3. Thus it will be seen that when the push rod 47is moved inward the crank 49 turnsthe drum and its tapes draw the blocks7 inward simultaneously, and as these blocks carry the hood sections 9the latter are brought together,

The push rod may be made telescopic as 'best seen in Fig. 4, and if soits outer end has a head 58 moving in a tube 57 against an expansivespring 59, the rod also having a pin 60 moving in a slot 61 in one sideof the tube to prevent the latter from becoming entirely disengagedfromthe rod. The tubular section may well be supported on a rest 62 andwithin a loop 64, and its outer end is forked as at 63 for the receptionof the roller 46. The springs 59 should be of greater strength than thesprings 56, but if for any reason the hoodsections do not come togetherwhen the cam 45 descends the springs 59 will yield to prevent fractureof parts.

Fast on the shaft 37 is a mutilated gear 66 whose blank space isindicated by the numeral 67 and the valve is actuated by another gear 68standing in position to be engaged by the gear 66 when the shaft ismoved by the mechanism above described so that the driven gear 41 isengaged by the driving gear 39. The valve 69 (best seen in Figs. 3, 5and 6) has a longitudinal bore 70 and a radial port 71. The valve is somounted within its casing 77 that the port comes opposite a slot 72which communicates with the chamber 73, the latter in turn communicatingthrough a flexible tube 7 4 With a vacuum tank not shown; and at anotherpoint in the rotation of the valve the port comes opposite a slot 75which communicates with the open air. This last communication ismaintained while the port rotates from the point A to B, then the valveis closed until the port reaches the point C, then the port is incommunication with the vacuum until it reaches the point D, and finallythe valve is closed until the port reaches the point A of starting. Thevalve (39 is preferably made tapering as seen in Fig. 3, and is heldwithin its casing by a pin 78 engaging a groove 79. The hub of the gear68 is mounted on a stub shaft 80 which is screwed as at 81 into theouter end of the valve plug. The casing 77 projects from and opensthrough a plate 83 which is connected with and supported by one of thehood sections as shown, and the bore of the valve communicates with theinterior of the hood.

To prevent the shaft 37 from rotating by momentum after its gear 41 isdisengaged from the driving gear 39, a pin 84: projects from one of thebearings 38 as best seen in Fig. 2, and is engaged by a pin 85projecting from or carried by the shaft 37. IVhen the latter is moved.by the rock lever the pin 85 passes beyond the tip of the pin 84 whichlatter tapers toward its point as shown.

The swivel connection between the shaft 37 and the upright arm of thebell crank lever 33 may be any that will operate successfully at thispoint, but by preference I employ that best seen in Fig. To the end ofthe shaft 37 is secured a disk 87, and this disk rests against anotherdisk 89 whose edge is screwed into a cupped collar 88 mounted loosely onthe shaft. The disk 89 has a pair of ears 90 between which the link 36is pivoted as seen, or it may have a single ear 90 pivoted directly tothe upright arm of the bell crank lever as in Fig. 13.

The adaptation of my invention to a so called rotary machinenecessitates but trifling changes and is shown in Figs. 12 and 13. Herethe can C follows the course indicated bv the arrows and after havingbeen capped oh the table T is thrown off the same by the ejector E. Thetrip 14 is pivoted at 13' to a corner of or a projection fromv the tableand pressed norn'lally into the path of the can by a spring 15. Its freeend carries .the finger 17 which projects beneath the inner end of thebeam :26 and rocks the latter on its pivot 31 when the table rises asdescribed above. The outer end of this beam may be. deflected slightlyas shown at 26" in order to adapt it to this type of machine, but it ispivoted at 33 to one arm of the bell crank lever 33 and the action isthe same as that of the beam 26 described above. The free end of thetrip now preferably carries :1 depending pin 16' moving in a slot 16" inthe table to limit the inward movement of the trip, but I prefer thisconstruction only because an upright stop as seen in Fig. 7 might standin the path of the can.

IVith a machine constructed substantially as described. the operation isas follows: The can is fed over the platform P from the left as seen inmost of the views, and passes onto the table T. In doing so itentersbetween the guide 12 and trip 14; of Fig. 7 or is carried aroundbetween the ejector E and trip 11 of Fig. 12. In either case themovement of the. trip projects the finger 17 or 17, and thereafter whenthe mechanism R raises the table and the can the finger tilts the beam26 or 26 against the tension of its spring 29. The descent of its outerend depresses the horizontal arm of the bell crank lever 38, and itsupright a rmthrough the swivelslides the shaft 37 in its bearings 38 andengages the gear :1 with the driving gear 39, which latter is constantlyrevolving. All this takes place if the can has moved onto the table andthe latter is raised, but if the table should rise without there being acan upon it the finger is of course not projected and the shaft 37 notthrown into action. The longitudinal movement of this shaft disengagesthe pins 8 and 85 so that it is free to rotate and it also brings thecams 45 into line with the rollers 16. Now when the shaft commences torotate as shown by the arrow in F ig. 2 said cams strike the. rollersand project the push rods i7whether the latter have the telescopicfeature or not. The inner ends of these rods which are pivoted at &8 tothe cranks 49, now swing the latter and oscillate the drums 52 which,through the tapes 51, draw the hood-sections 9 toward each other. Theinner edges" of their flanges 11 are thus brought into close contactwith the body of the can C, and the packing 11 makes a. close fitaroundit; the meeting edges 9 of the sections also come into contact with eachother, and as they are packed a close fit is made along the sides of thehood; and the meeting ends of the neck sections 10 come into closeContact with each other, while the packing 10' on their inner facesclosely contacts with the stuiiing box 2. The cams 45 hold the parts inthis position while the mutilation 67 is passing the gear 68, and nextthe teeth 66 engage said gear and the valve ('30 is turned as shown bythe arrow'in Fig. 5. As soon as the vacuum tank or suction meansconnected with the hose 74 is thrown into communication with the bore 70of this valve, air is exhausted from within the hood and therefore fromWithin the can whose cover is at this time not sealed; and the sealingoperation is eflec"' d by well-known means, but While the vacuum ismaintained. The result is that a much finer product is canned than thatwhich is treated to superheated steam prior to hermetically closing thecan. It Will be observed from the shape of the cam 45 and the mutilation67 that the shaft 37 makes two complete revolutions during the sealingof the can, and this I prefer although it is possible to give othershapes to parts so that only a single revolution of this shaft isnecessary. During the first revolution the teeth 66 turn the valve fromthe position shown in Fig. 5 to a position where its port 71 connectswith the chamber 73, and now the hood sections are drawn together by thecontained vacuum and held together by external atmospheric pressure.During the second revolution of the shaft the teeth 66 turn the valvefrom this position back to the point of starting, and as soon as itsportcommunicates at all with the slot 75 which opens to the air, thevacuum is broken and the hood sections are parted under the influence ofthe spring 56. Meanwhile the cams 45 may have rojected the push rods 47and turned the crums 52 a second time, but no harm results.

As soon as the vacuum is brdken and the hood-sections are restored tothe position shown in the drawings, mechanism (not shown) permits thedescent of the table T with the sealed can, and as the finger 17 thenceases to support the inner end of the beam 26 the latter is tilted backto normal by the spring 29. Its outer arm now actuates the bell cranklever 33, and the shaft 37 is slid back through its bearings 38 to thepoint of starting, the pins 85 and 84 coming into contact to prevent theshaft from rotating under momentum. The sealed can is now in position tobe taken off the table by hand or otherwise, and if my invention isapplied to a machine of the type indicated in Fig. 12, the sealed canwill be automatically carried forward and ejected by the element E.

What I claim is:

1. In a can closing machine, the combination with the table, the headand seaming mechanism, and means for altering their relative positionsand sealing the can; of a hood composed of movable sections and defininga chamber inclosing said mechanism and the upper part of the can hermetically when the sections are brought together, means for exhausting airfrom such chamber prior to the sealing of the can, and mechanismactuated by the insertion and rise of the can for controlling saidexhausting means.

2. In a can closing machine, the combination with the table, the headand seaming mechanism, and means .for altering their relative positionsand sealing the can; of a hood composed of movable sections and defininga chamber inclosing said mechanism and the upper part of the canhermetically when the parts are brought together, means for exhaustingair from such chamber prior to the sealing of the can, and mechanismcontrolled by the insertion and rise of the can on the table for firstforcing the sections of the hood together and then controlling saidexhausting means.

3. In a can closing machine, the combination withv the table, the headand seaming mechanism, and means for altering their relative positionsand sealing the can; of a hood composed of two movable parts anddefining a chamber inclosing said mechanism and the upper part of thecan hermetically when the parts are brought together, a conduit leadingfrom said chamber to a source of air exhaust, a valve in said conduitfor establishing communication between the chamber and exhaust orbetween the chamber and the open air, mechanism controlled by theinsertion and rise of the can for forcing the parts of the hoodtogether, and connections between said mechanism and valve for actuatingthe latter after the hood has been closed.

I. In a can closing machine, the combination with the table, the seamingmechanism, and means for altering their relative positions and sealingthe can; of a hood composed of two movable parts and defining a chamberinclosing said mechanism and the. upper part of the can hermeticallywhen the parts are brought together, a conduit leading from said chamberto a source of air exhaust, a valve in the. conduit for establishingcommunication between the chamber and exhaust or between the chamber andthe open air, a shaft having cams, means actuated by said cams forforcing the parts of the hood together, connections between the shaftand valve for actuating the valve by the rotation of the shaft, andmechanism actuated by the insertion and rise of the can for starting therotation of the shaft and by the descent of such can for checking itsrotation.

5. In a can closing machine, the combination with the table, the seamingmechanism, and means for altering their relative positions and sealingthe; can; of a hood composed of two movable parts and defining 'achamber inclosing said mechanism and part of the can hermetically Whenthe parts are brought together, a source of air exahust, a valve forestablishing communicationbetween the chamber and exhaust or between thechamber and the open air, a shaft ro tating and sliding in its bearingsand having adriven wheel, a driving wheel with which said driven wheelengages when the shaft is moved longitudinally, mechanism M actuated bythe insertion and rise of the can for so moving the shaft to engage thedriven with the driving wheel and by the descent of the can for throwingsaid wheels out of engagement, cams fast on the shaft, means for closingthe hood-sections including push rods with which said cams aline whenthe shaft is thrown into action, and connections between the shaft andvalve for rotating the latter from the former.

6. In a can closing machine, the combination with the table, the seamingmechanism, and means for altering their relative positions and sealingthe can; of. a hood composed of two movable parts and defining a chamberinclosing said mechanism and the can hermetically when the parts arebrought together, a source of air exhaust, a valve including a plughaving openings for establishing communication between the chamber and.exhaust or between the chamber and the open air, a shaft rotating andsliding in its bearings and having a driven wheel, a driving wheel withwhich said driven wheel engages when the shaft is moved longitudinally,mechanism actuated by the insertion and rise of the can for so movingthe shaft to cause the engagement ofsaid wheels and by the removal ofthe can for throwing said wheels out of engagement, cams fast on theshaft, means for closing the hoodsections including push rods with whichsaid cams aline when the shaft is thrown into action, a gear on thevalve plug, and a mutilated gear on the shaft at a point to engage thefirst-named gear when the shaft is thrown into action.

- 7. In a can closing machine, the combination with the seamingmechanism including a head having a cylindrical shank, and a vertically.movable table beneath said head; of a hood composed of two separableand movable sections and defining a chamber inclosing the head and thebody of the can, each hood-section having at its upper end one-half of aneck having internal packing adapted to hermetically inclose said shankand at its lower end one-half of an inturned flange having packingaround its inner edge to contact hermetically with and inclose and gripthe body of the can, and means for exhausting air from said chamber.

8. In a can closing machine, the combination with the seaming mechanismincluding a head having a cylindrical shank, a stuffing box surroundingsaid shank, and a vertically movable table beneath the head; of atwo-part hood defining a chamber inclosing the head and the upper partof the can, the meeting edges of the parts being packed for contact witheach other, the upper ends of the parts being shaped and packed forcontact with said stufling box, inturned flanges carried by the lowerends of said parts packed on their edges for contact with cans, meansfor moving the parts into contact with each other, and means forexhausting .air from said chamber.

9. In a can vacuumizing and seaming machine, the combination with theplatform, and table, an overhead plate having a depending stufling box,the seaming mechanism including a head whose shank extends through saidstuiiing box, and means for raising the table at intervals; of'four rodshanging from said plate, guide rods connecting their lower ends inpairs, a two-part hood whose sections are slidably mounted on said guiderods and packed to hermetically inclose said stuffing box, head, and theupper portion of the'can, means controlled by the insertion and rise ofthe can for forcing said parts together, and means for exhausting airfrom the hood.

10. In a can vacuumizing and seaming machine, the combination with theplatform and table, an overhead plate having a'depending stuffing box,the seaming mechanism including a head whose shank extends through saidstufling'box, and means for raising the table at intervals; of four rodshanging from said plate, guide rods connecting their lower ends inpairs, a two-part hood whose sections are slidably mounted on said guiderods and packed to hermetically inclose said stufling box, head, and theupper portion of the can, springs on said guide rods for normallyseparating the parts, means for exhausting air from the hood, a rotaryelement, devices thereon for overcoming the springs and closing saidparts and for turning on and then turning off the air exhaust, and meansactuated by the insertion and rise of the can for starting the rotationof said element.

11. In a can vacuumizing and seaming machine, the combination with theplatform and table, an overhead plate having a depending st'uifing box,the seaming mechanism whose shank extends through said stuffing box, andmeans for raising the table at intervals; of supports depending fromsaid. plate, guide rods connecting them in pairs, a two-part hood whosesections are slida-bly mounted on said rods and packed to hermeticallyinclose said mechanism, and the upper portion of the can, springs onsaid guide rods for normally separating the parts, means for exhaustingair from the hood, a rotary element, devices thereon for overcoming thespring and closing said parts and for turning on and then turning oflthe air exhaust, a trip movably mounted on the table and spring pressedinto the path of a can being passed thereon, a source of power, andmeans actuated by said trip and the rise of the table for throwing saidelement into connection with the source of power and starting itsrotation.

12. In a vacuumizing device for cans, the

combination with a platfori'n, a vertically moving table therein, anoverhead plate, four rods hanging therefrom. guide rods connecting themin pairs, and a two-part hood whose parts have blocks slidably mountedon said guide rods; of intermediate blocks fixed on the guide rods,expansive springs coiled on the. latter between the intermediate and thesliding blocks, drums journaled on said intermediate blocks, tapesextending from the top and bottom of each drum to the respective membersof a pair of the sliding blocks, means for rotating the drums in unisonto close the parts of the hood on the can, and means for exhausting airfrom the hood.

18. In a vacuumizing device, the combination with avertically movingtable, an overhead plate, guide rods supported thereby in pairs, and atwo-part hood whose parts have blocks slidably mounted on said rods; ofintermediate blocks fixed on the rods, expansive springs coiled on thelatter between the intermediate and the sliding blocks, drums ournaledon said intermediate blocks, tapes extending from the top and bottom ofeach drum to the respective members of a pair of sliding blocks, cranksfast to the drums, push rods connected at one. end with said cranks, ashaft across their other ends, cams thereon, means for exhausting airfrom the hood, and devices for controlling said exhausting meansactuated by the rotation of said shaft.

1 In a vacuumizing device, the combination with a moving table, a pairof guide rods, and a two-part hood whose parts have blocks slidablymounted on said rods; of intermediate blocks fixed on the rods,expansive springs between the intermediate and the sliding blocks, drmnsjournaled on said intermediate blocks, tapes extending from the top andbottom of each drum to the respective members of a pair of slidingblocks, cranks fast to the drums, a two-part push rod whereof one parthas its outer end connected with each crank and the other part has aroller in its outer end, an expansive spring distending the parts with aforce greater than that of the springs on the guide rods, a stop forpreventing the complete separation of the parts, a shaft having camsadapted to engage said rollers, means for exhausting air from the hood,and devices for controlling said exhausting means actuated by therotation of said shaft.

15. In a can handling machine, the combination with a two-part hood,means for closing its parts around the can. a table for raising the caninto position to be inclosed, a longitudinally movable shaft having camsadapted to be brought into position to engage said closing means, andmeans for r0- tating the shaft; of a trip pivoted on the table andcarrying a finger, a vertically movnausea able rod having a forkstanding over and engaged by the tip of the finger when. the latter isprojected by the presence of a can on the table, a beam rocked by therise of said rod, and connections between the beam and shaft for movingthe latter when the beam is rocked.

16. In a can handling machine, the combination with a two-part hood,means for closing its parts around the can, a table for raising the caninto position to be inclosed, a longitudinally movable shaft having camsadapted to be brought into position to engage said closing means, andmeans for rotating the shaft; of a trip pivoted on the table andcarrying a finger, a vertically movable rod standing over and engaged bythe tip of the finger when the latter'is projected by the presence of acan 011 the table, a beam centrally supported and having its inner endconnected with said rod, a swivel at one end of said shaft, and a leverconnecting the swivel with the other end of said beam whereby therocking of the beam slides the shaft. for the purpose set forth.

17. In a can handling machine, the combination with a two-part hood,means for closing its parts around the can,a table for raising the caninto position to be inclosed, a longitudinally movable shaft having camsadapted to be brought into position to engage said closing means, andmeans for rotating the shaft; of a trip pivoted on the table andcarrying a finger, a vertically movable rod having a fork standing overand engaged by the tip of the finger when the latter is projected by thepresence of a can on the table, a standard rising from the platform, abeam centrally pivoted in said standard and having its inner armconnected with said rod, a spring normally depressing this arm, anotherstandard rising from the platform, a bell crank lever pivoted at itsangle in this standard and having one arm pivotally connected with theouter arm of said beam, a swivel on the shaft, and a link connecting theremaining arm of the bell crank lever with said swivel.

18. In a vacuumizing device for cans, the combination with a platform, avertically movable table therein, a two-part hood whose sections aremovably mounted above said table, means for closing the parts togetherto define a chamber inclosing the upper part of the can, a pipe leadingfrom said chamber to a source of air exhaust, a rotary valve within thelength of said pipe. whose casing has a slot opening to the air andWhose plug has a port passing said slot during its rotation, and a gearconnected with said plug; of a shaft rotating and sliding in itsbearings, means for sliding the shaft when a can is passed onto saidtable, cams on the shaft adapted when it is slid to move in the path ofthe hoodclosing means, and a mutilated gear on the shaft adapted when itis slid to move into engagement with the gear on said valve.

19. In a vacuumizing device for cans, the combination with a platform, avertically movable table therein, a two-part hood whose sections aremovably mounted above said table, means for closing the parts to definea chamber inclosing the upper part of the can, a pipe leading from saidchamber to a source of air exhaust, a rotary valve within the length ofsaid pipe whose casing has a slot opening to the air and whose plug hasa port passing said slot during its rotation and a gear connected withsaid plug; of a shaft rotating and sliding in its bearings, means forsliding the shaft when a can is passed onto said table, cams on theshaft adapted when it is slid to move in the path of the hood-closingmeans, a mutilated gear on the shaft adapted when it is slid to moveinto engagement with the gear on said valve, a pin in said shaft andanother pin in one of its bearings of a length to be disengaged by thefirst pin when the shaft is slid through its bearings, a beveled drivengear on said shaft, and. a beveled spring-pressed driving gear on apower shaft adjacent thereto and with which the driven gear is engagedwhen the shaft is slid.

20. In a can handling machine, the com bination with a two-part hood,means for closing its parts around the can, a table for raising the caninto position to be inclosed, a longitudinally movable shaft having camsadapted to be brought into position to engage said closing means, andmeans for r0- tating the shaft; of a trip pivoted on the table, astandard rising from the platform, a beam centrally pivoted insaidstandard and having its inner arm standing over the tip of the trip whenthe latter is projected by the presence of a can on the table, a

spring normally depressing this arm, another standard rising from theplatform, a bell crank lever pivoted at its angle in this standard andhaving one arm pivotally con nected with the outer arm of said beam, aswivel on the shaft, and connections between the remaining arm of thebell crank lever and said swivel.

21. In a can closing machine, the combination with the table, theclosing mechanism, a hood defining a chamber inclosing said mechansm,and means for altering the relative positions of the table and hood toproject a can into the latter; of means for exhausting air from suchchamber prior to the closing of the can, and mechanism controlled by theinsertion of the can on the table andthe rise of both the table and canfor actuating said exhausting means.

22. In a closing machine for cans and the like, the combination with asupport, a closing mechanism, a hood defining a chamber inclosing saidmechanism, and means for altering the relative positions of the supportand hood, of means for exhausting air from such chamber prior to theclosing of the can, and mechanism controlled by the insertion and riseof the can for actuating said exhausting means.

23. In a closing machine for cans and the like, the combination with asupport and closing mechanism; of a hood made up of movable sections,and means for moving the sections to grip the can body and to form anair-tight chamber whose walls are made up of said hood and a portion ofthe can and inclosing said closing mechanism and a part of the can to beclosed.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses-LUDWIG W'URZBURG. Witnesses:

H. S. Bnooxs, J D. ROCKEY.

